Thousands attend funeral of Sufi singer killed by extremists

ISLAMABAD – Thousands of mourners are attending the funeral of a well-known Pakistani Sufi singer who was shot dead in the port city of Karachi in an attack claimed by Islamic extremists.

Television footage showed tearful mourners showering rose petals over an ambulance carrying the coffin of Amjad Sabri, whose car was ambushed by gunmen on Wednesday when he was on his way to a local TV appearance. Sabri will be buried later Thursday.

Sabri and his late father, Ghulam Farid Sabri, were renowned qawwali singers, a style of music rooted in Sufism, or Islamic mysticism.

Militants have targeted Sufis in the past and destroyed their shrines.

A splinter faction of the Pakistani Taliban said after the attack that it had killed Sabri because he was a "blasphemer."